I'm a Manchester United season ticket holder - this is what Ruben Amorim needs to do to win over the fanbase

Amorim must start by making United harder to beat and improving on the dismal record at Old Trafford from the past year.

For many supporters, the 3-0 dismantling by Tottenham Hotspur at the end of September, a month after the 3-0 loss to Liverpool was the nail in the coffin for Erik ten Hag.

It was compounded by the regular disappointments at Old Trafford last season as several smaller clubs comfortably beat United, with Brighton, Newcastle, and Bournemouth being the standouts. And all too often Ten Hag’s team collapsed within games.

Last season’s FA Cup semi-final against Coventry at Wembley was the most memorable. A close VAR call prevented it from being one of the most embarrassing defeats in the club’s history. But the 7-0 defeat at Anfield in Ten Hag’s first season, the injury-time collapse at Chelsea in April, and the 4-0 loss at Selhurst Park in May were all dark days.

This United side is not good enough to win most weeks, but the ability to lose without being humiliated will be important to maintain support. Although defeats will be accepted by supporters, there is an expectation that he imposes his identity and style of play on the team.

Despite watching every game under Ten Hag, the Old Trafford faithful struggled to see a gameplan to get behind. It became difficult to not look on enviously at the transformative impact Unai Emery had on Aston Villa, a man who was appointed several months after Ten Hag joined United. But the United job does carry an unmatched degree of scrutiny.

Fortunately, 39-year-old Amorim has built an impressive CV during his short managerial career in Portugal. Since he was appointed at Sporting Lisbon in 2020, he has won two league titles and two league cups.

His first title in 2020-2021 was Sporting’s first for 19 years. And as the wait for a league title at Old Trafford has already surpassed 11 years, there are obvious parallels to the situation he will inherit at United. Amorim’s pedigree in knockout football is another valuable trait, due to the expectation that United compete for every trophy.

However, I do have doubts about the suitability of United’s squad to play the 3-4-3 he deployed in Portugal. Ole Gunnar Solskjær deployed a back three sporadically in big games, but it is not a system United fans are accustomed to. And after spending months last season desperately hoping two central defenders would be available, I have reservations about implementing a system that requires three.

No matter what tactical setup Amorim implements, he needs to find goals. In Ten Hag’s two full Premier League seasons in charge, United scored 58 goals and then 57 goals – just one more than Brentford. And it is not just on the pitch where Amorim needs to learn lessons from Ten Hag’s failures.

The Dutchman lacked charisma when he spoke and although he was respected by supporters, he never created the same connection as Jurgen Klopp had done at Liverpool. For example, at away games throughout Ten Hag’s first two years in charge, he did not tend to go to the away end to acknowledge supporters after the match. Although a small gesture, given the unrelenting scrutiny on the United manager, showing an appreciation for your most enduring fans is a sensible move.

Despite the many issues that ultimately led to Ten Hag’s dismissal, his promotion of youth players was positive and in keeping with the club’s DNA. Continuing the pathway trodden by Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho is essential for any United manager. The United job has proved seemingly impossible for six managers since Sir Alex Ferguson, but it remains one of the most rewarding. It is imperative for the manager to capture the love of the fans if they want to return the club to the top of English football.